1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to articulated soft dolls and, more particularly, to an improved construction for joining the limbs to the torso of a soft doll.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The invention relates to so-called "soft dolls" having a torso formed of a thin, flexible material to which the limbs are affixed and then stuffed with an elastic material which insures that the body will return to its original shape each time it is subjected to shape-changing force.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,180,109 describes an early example of soft doll which has a fabric-covered torso stuffed with cotton batting, or the like, to which hollow limb members formed of soft, resilient rubber are attached. Each of the relatively rigid limbs is provided at the body end with an annular rib which forms a complementary groove or recess in a fabric covered plug inserted into the body end of the limb. The limb is attached to the torso by means of a pivot pin which extends through a pair of cooperating rigid discs, one of which is disposed within the plug at the body end of the member and the other is disposed underneath the fabric covering of the torso. In effect, the plug forms a limb stump which is movably jointed to the body by the pivot pin. However, the structure for achieving movability of the limbs with respect to the torso consists of many individual parts which appear rather difficult to assemble, which would add to the cost of manufacturing the doll.
The more recent soft doll described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,536,165 has a torso covered with a thin skin of latex rubber or soft polyvinyl chloride to which limb members are attached at shoulder and hip locations without piercing the skin. This is accomplished by forming the skin of the torso with relatively long closed extensions at the shoulders and hips to which the arms and legs are attached. In one embodiment, the limb is attached to the torso by pushing the outer surface of the closed extension over the body end portion of the limb member and securing the limb to the extension with a tight elastic ring disposed interiorly of the skin and engaging a ring-shaped groove formed in the outer surface of the limb member. In another embodiment, the arms and legs are attached to the body skin by a special coupling piece disposed interiorly of each closed extension; the coupling piece is circular in cross-section and has an annular groove extending around its circumference which interlockingly engages a circular inwardly directed flange on the proximal edge of a hollow arm or leg, as the case may be, when the body end is pushed over the skin enveloping the coupling piece. Assembly is facilitated, and damage to the skin minimized, by applying a lubricant to the exterior surface of the closed extension prior to attaching the limbs.
Both constructions permit the limbs to be rotated with respect to their respective stumps so that they can be positioned as desired during assembly of the doll. However, because the thin skin of the torso turns out to be the bearing surface on which the flange on the limb is rotatable and the limbs are made of heavier material than the torso skin, rotation of the limbs relative to the body subjects the skin, at the bearing surface, to damaging wear. Moreover, the relatively long stumps at the shoulder and hip portions formed by the closed extensions of the torso skin are unnatural in appearance and also cause unnatural motion when the arms and legs are rotated relative to their respective stumps.